The Fordson Tractor Pages Forum

About 6 weeks ago I "repaired" my PM steering box by cleaning out all the crud and taking out some of the shims to take out a lot of slack. It worked until now and gave me the chance to finish off some wood jobs that had to be completed by the end of March. I`ve finished all the jobs and the steering box is groaning again so it will have to be done properly now.Its a pain to have to do again but my own fault.

Does anyone know where to get a complete kit which includes all the parts needed in one box so to speak?

I`ve spent a lot of time trawling through sites selling individual parts but they all seem to have bits missing / unavailable and I can see its going to be a nightmare buying pieces from several sellers then finding out if they are all compatible .
I`ve also decided this time when I part the wiring loom to take the fuel tank off I`m going to get a multi pin plug and socket to fit so that assembly will just be a case of pushing a plug in and the electrics will all be right, first time. Well, that's the plan we`ll see. Dave

Dave,

All depends on what's broken down in there.
I haven't seen a complete set so far. Maybe your best bet is to find a good used one?
Do you need the rocker shaft, as I see these aren't currently available at at least 2 sellers.

Hi Mathias,

The second hand route is tempting especially bearing in mind the time saved fitting it, but its how to decide if I`m buying a good one or not. Some that are up for sale are nearly as expensive as renewing my own, and of a couple of used ones I enquired about one had no guarantee at all and the second one said he would swop it for a replacement if needed, but all the fitting / disassembly and returning any unsuitable unit was my responsibility and cost - thanks a bunch.
We couldn`t see very much at all wrong with my original but it may be 60 years old and all a bit worn but I`ve got nothing to compare it with. Dave

Dave,

these are the pictures of mine (I wish I took more pictures). Maybe you can compare them with your steering shaft.




All I did was cleaning, renewing the seals (didnt do anything on the top bush), taking out some shims and putting in some fresh oil.
you can notice on the last picture the rocker arm is missing a little piece, but it doesn't cause any problems.

Thanks Mathias, yours looks the same as mine did, I`ll have to get the box off again and take more care , I must have missed something the last time. Probably rushed it to get back in to work. I have plenty of time now with the Coronavirus restictions, all my work has dried up and we just have to make the best of it . I`ll post when there`s any progress keep well Dave

Biggest problem with these houses is to hold the oil inside. Sealing on the outgoing shaft is the problem.

Henk is right about the difficulty in keeping the oil inside the housing. I have had great success using Swivel Hub "grease" as used in Land Rover Defender front swivel hubs. The items inside the 2 "boxes", (Fordson steering box and LandRover steering swivel hubs) are similar in that they both have moving, meshing and sliding parts. I couldn't stop my NP Super Major steering box to stop seeping, so used the LandRover stuff. No problems and no leaks in the last 12 years of usage on a Yorkshire Dales hill farm.

Timeee

Great tip.
Dit you just fill the house with it or only the rocker arm between the bushes and the house with oil?

Not quite sure what you are asking here Henk. There is a level plug on top of the housing to aid filling of the major part of the steering box where the rocker and spiral part of the wormshaft operate, but I also topped the box right up using the filler plug on the left hand side of the steering box, which is actually in the lower part of the steering column. This ensures that the lubricant level is above/at the upper bearing race, provided you have fitted the gaskets correctly, so that the lubrication hole remains free!

Tim E

I was toying with the idea of fitting a grease nipple and just fill the whole thing with grease as access to the plug is not easy, but a niggle in the back of my head says if it would work it would have been done before? Dave

Timee,
So you fill up the complete house. That is what I wanted to know.
Thanks.

Dave,
why would'nt it work? Puzlles me.

My mechanic son felt the grease would solidify onto the casing and go hard but I feel he underestimates the the amount of heat generated by the transmission to keep it soft plus there is a fair amount of mechanical movement in that box - its very tempting.
I`ve always felt farmers would neglect checking the oil level as its not quick and easy to do and they don`t like keeping different oils for different applications. I bet most farm workshops have one universal engine/hydraulic oil and one grease and nothing else.Dave

To Dave and others

I suppose the term "grease" for this steering swivel grease is not indicative of what it is. It appears far away from the stuff normally found in your farm grease gun. It is EP00, which is quite slushy. If you are worried that it may not get to "all the parts that it needs to refresh", some people in the LandRover world throw in some EP90 oil into their swivels (as well as the grease) to make sure the railko bush at the top gets some lubricant. So if you are worried that your Major's steering box internals may not get the lubrication it needs you can add about 60ml of EP90 to the swivel grease shot. I am pretty sure that EP00 is used in the gearbox of drum mowers, which means it has to be pretty good stuff to keep that lot whirring around transmitting the power needed.

The only problem I have found is that the EP00 stuff does not drain out of the housing if you want to change it and it is a bit of a pain to clean out if you are stripping and cleaning out the steering box. That said, hands up all those who even check their steering box oil unless your steering arm and gearbox housing is plastered in leaking oil? The LandRover One shot steering swivel grease is usually administered by squeezing the 500ml plastic sachet, a bit like the icing sugar bag you use when decorating your birthday cake...well OK I may be taking some of you outside your comfort zones here!


As we may be somewhat limited in going out to play in the current Coronavirus situation, I thought a bit of trivia could be generated here. This grease is thixotropic, in that when it is stirred or moved it becomes liquid and when it is not agitated, it becomes more solid. There are quite a few common things that are thixotropic, one being non-drip paint and others being lipstick and mascara. So for those of you in touch with your feminine side, you could put lipstick in your tractor steering box, swivel grease on your lips to stop them cracking when out ploughing on a cold, windy March day and non-drip paint for your make up! Ha ha.

Tim E

An update on the steering box. I finally got most the parts needed and got it assembled. The top bearing feels good with the 4 or 5 shims I had, but I only had 1 shim for the side cover and its nowhere near enough even between thick gaskets.
Has anyone found a supplier for these shims? I`ve tried 2 breakers with no luck and found nothing online.
I had a go and cut one out of a biscuit tin lid which helped but the box binds up when the bolts are only hand tight and I feel too many homemade shims won`t be oil tight due to "variable manufacturing tollerences" and I`m running out of biscuit tins. Also the wife wants her scissors back Well they were ok when I last used them. Dave

Dave,

Would it be possible to place more paper gaskets? As for the side pulley, it's also advised to put more than 1, to avoid spinning in neutral. I think it's worth a try.

Dave

I’m currently rebuilding my box too... it’s in bits on the bench waiting for parcel deliveries after the Bank Holiday!

I’ve got a new seal, new shaft and nut, and new top and bottom bearings but like you, couldn’t find any shim kits. My mate who runs an independent LR garage suggested that I could make a thicker shim for the side cover out of a corn flakes packet and hylomar both sides when I’m happy that, combined with the couple of shims I’ve managed to salvage, it doesn’t bind up or becomes too slack.

I can’t understand either how to prevent water ingress at the steering wheel, the ‘cap’ that is at the top of my shaft is severely mashed up, and I wonder if there should be a felt padding washer or equivalent?? I haven’t seen one mentioned in any exploded diagrams. I’m toying with the idea of packing some high melting point grease into the top brass bush to repel any moisture...

Cheers, Tim

Mathias and Tim, I can elaborate on the last post. My "couple of thick gaskets" were 1 x original shim, 3 x .8mm gaskets, 1 x Weetabix gasket and a biscuit tin shim all smeared with grease. With the bolts at hand tight the box is locked up. I`ve checked the forks are in as far as they can go and the roller is free to move and isn`t proud of its groove.
I`ve messaged another breaker / old tractor dealer I found asking for shims without success so I think the only way forward is to keep on making gaskets until it works but I`m doubtful the box with hold oil with so many layers for it to leak through so I will probably go down the lipstick and grease route which Tim E uses on his feminine side!
Tim, you forgot something needed for your refurb - a pocket full of loose change for the swear box. Dave

I've just bought a litre of the EP00 liquid grease as discussed elsewhere and now widely used for Series Landrover steering and relay boxes, looks as though it will not congeal like a soap based grease and so have a much longer and effective life. I've yet another slime infection in the diesel so will have to have the tank off for a rinse out soon which will assist filling !

Dave,

You weren’t wrong... I’ve never dropped so many expletives trying to get those dastardly ball bearings in! I was fortunate enough to have the shaft delivered this morning, but underestimated how long the rebuild would take. Especially given the heat we’ve had in Devon today! I must have started at 1100 and have just picked a beer from the fridge upon completion! Luckily, there were 5 shims in the side case and three on the shaft casing, and only a little jiggery pokery was needed. However, prior to test drive I found that the starter solenoid has packed up. Lots more swearing and tapping it with a hammer didn’t help so I had to Hotwire it with a screwdriver. Trevor drives lovely now, even with worn kingpins! I don’t have to keep spinning the steering wheel when going down a straight driveway to the field entrance

Thanks to everyone’s advice and input, the job was much easier than just referring to the manual!

Next on the list is a solenoid, and to crack on with my list of leaks!

Cheers everyone. Tim